Heaven's Keep by William Kent Krueger

I happened to have had the opportunity to read all day long today. Lucky I had my copy of Heaven's Keep by William Kent Krueger along.

Krueger's books are always beautiful, thoughtful and suspenseful. This one is that, plus it's a page turner from the start, and it never stops till the end.

Cork O'Connor's wife Jo has left on a chartered plane, accompanying clients to a summit of sorts on Indian Casinos and gambling laws. Before leaving, Jo and Cork argued over Cork's proposal that he apply for an open deputy position.

When word comes that the plane has gone down in an area near Hot Springs, Wyoming, but the plane is lost, all Cork can think of is not saying goodbye, and not saying he was sorry.

With his son Stephen, he goes to Wyoming to try to aid in the search. Although local law enforcement are not comfortable with their intrusion into the search process, they allow Cork and Stephen to take some harrowing helicopter rides to help search.

In the midst of another storm they fly through Giant's Gate, Baby's Cradle and Sleeping Baby Lake. Don't you love the names?

Months after all hope is lost, there comes word that it is possible that the plane did not crash after all, but that it landed someplace. This sends Cork on a deadly trail back to Wyoming in the hope of finding his Jo alive after all.

Krueger is such a master of characterization that you feel you know everyone he meets, and you want to trust everyone though you know some among his new friends are part of the unsolved tragedy.

One character, whom I never trusted and who I kept expecting to take off his mask of civility and reveal himself a villain is Hugh Parmer, a wealther developer who drops everything to put himself and his monies at Cork's disposal. He just sticks to Cork's side like glue, and as the plot unwinds and we see there is some larger force for ill at work in this plane crash, I really thought ok, say he's it, but nooooo.

This is maybe the last Cork O'Connor story, but I don't think so. Hugh needs to be unmasked.